There are approximately 27 million tennis players in the United States, of which nearly 5 million play 21 times or more per year. Approximately 3.2 million players are youths. Most tennis players spend a lot of time outside in the sun. Accordingly, they run the risk of getting too much sun exposure which can be risky. UVA and UVB rays can cause progressive skin damage that leads to skin cancer, which is the most common type of cancer. More than a million Americans are diagnosed with it each year. The most common forms of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma (BCC), squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and melanoma. Although most people develop the less harmful basal cell or squamous cell variety, melanoma can be deadly. The best way to prevent skin cancer is to stay out of the sun, but if you play a sport that takes place in the sun, you are going to be exposed. Each of these has been linked to intermittent and/or chronic sun exposure. Young and small children are especially susceptible to effects of sunlight and heat.
According to the Tennis Industry Association in its most recent TIA National Database Court Report, the total number of tennis courts in the United States is estimated at 270,000. There are significantly more outdoor courts than indoor courts.
Of the ten geographic areas with the highest density of tennis courts per population, nine of those are in southern climates. The area of West Palm Beach-Boca Raton leads in tennis court density with 2.75 total courts and 0.56 public courts per thousand residents, respectively. The only area not in a southern climate in the top ten of tennis court density is Grand Rapids, Mich., with 1.01 total courts and 0.75 public courts per thousand residents, respectively.
Tennis is played on a rectangular flat surface, usually made of grass, clay, asphalt or concrete court. The standard court is 78 feet long and 36 feet wide. Its width is 27 feet for singles matches and 36 feet for doubles matches. The service line is 21 feet from the net. Additional clearance space around the court is needed in order for players to reach overrun balls for a total of 60 feet wide and 120 feet long. A net is stretched across the full width of the court, parallel with the baselines, dividing it into two equal ends. The net is 3 feet 6 inches high at the posts, and 3 feet high in the center. Often a fencing structure surrounds a tennis court or a group of tennis courts. Typically fencing or walls around an outside court are a minimum of 8 feet high for residential courts and 10 feet for clubs or park facilities.
In 2012, the official rules and court dimensions for children aged 10 and under changed. Children 8 and under now play on a court that is 36 feet in length, which can be positioned laterally on a standard tennis court. Children 9 and 10 years old play on a court that is 60 feet in length which can be positioned within a standard court.
The area above the tennis court should be free from overhead obstruction. For indoor courts, the minimum overhead clearance free of any obstructions should be at least 20 feet above the baseline and 35 feet above the net.
While total sun exposure is dependent on the geographic location of an outdoor tennis court, the time of year, its orientation and cloud cover, outdoor tennis players are exposed to sun largely depending on the time of day. For persons such as instructors who spend a large amount of their day on the court, they are potentially exposed to a significant amount of sun over the entire day. While some persons are more susceptible to sunburn than others, all persons can experience negative effects from sun exposure if exposed for extended times. It is not always necessary during tennis instruction for the entire playing surface of the tennis court to be available, and certain lessons can be provided using only a portion of the court.
Additionally, while the temperature in the shade is the same as the temperature in a sun-exposed area, direct sunlight makes a person feel warmer because electromagnetic radiation is being embedded directly into the skin. Thus, a person standing in direct sunlight feels warmer than if standing in the shade.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,306 to Milinic and titled CONVERTIBLE ENCLOSURE FOR BUILDINGS AND AREAS discloses a convertible tennis-court enclosure, comprising a plurality of parallel supporting beams and two closure elements between two of the supporting beams to be extended simultaneously along the supporting beams, each element including a series of purlins arranged to slide on the supporting beams and connected in two's by a portion of a canvas fixed to the purlins, of which the length is equal to half that of the beams.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,281,795 to Cutler and titled RETRACTABLE AWNING discloses a retractable awning, comprising a screen which may be extended and retracted, wherein there is provided a first motor arranged to extend the screen, a second motor arranged to retract the screen, and a control unit arranged to control the first and second motors, wherein the first and second motors are synchronized so as to maintain tension in the screen within predetermined values.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2004/0089426 to Cosgrove and titled SHADE AND PRIVACY EXTENSION ACCESSORY discloses a screen panel to improve privacy, shade, and aesthetic properties of a rigid barrier fence or wall or an outdoor patio. The screen panel has visual and audio impairment properties that extends upward from the top of a barrier wall and effectively increases the overall wall height. Other embodiments affix a shade or aesthetic combination accessory from a barrier fence or wall, roof, or roof support member.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0261953 to Hart and titled SAIL SHAPED AWNINGS discloses sail shaped awnings, and particularly to attached or freestanding awnings that use tensioned flexible fabric to protect against the sun, wind, rain, hail and other weather conditions. Such awnings may also incorporate fire fighting characteristics. In one aspect, the invention resides in a sail shaped awning attached to a building structure, and at least one remote support or column having at least one wire or cable for tensioning the awning, is connected to the roof or roof support assembly so as to apply a downward, restraining force.
Preferably, outer edge(s) of the tensioned awning fabric connected to at least one remote support or column are raised or lowered to assist in holding down the roof and to keep out debris during high winds. The outer edge(s) may be connected to hoisting cables or chains connected to winches on the remote support or column, or to telescopic columns.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0211179 to Cutler et al. and titled COVERING SYSTEM discloses a retractable covering system including a screen that is movable between a retracted and an extended configuration and at least two tensioning members attached to a leading edge of the screen and arranged to pull the screen in opposite transverse directions so as to create transverse tension in the screen.
Japanese Laid Open Patent Application No. JP8260739 to Yamamoto et al. and titled MEMBRANEOUS STRUCTURE FOR SPORTS FACILITIES discloses a structure to provide sports facilities with good ventilation and soft transmission of sunlight having a roof and wall made out of membranous material having specified total light transmittance, where there are multiple openings in the circumferential areas. By use of a composite membranous material in which cloth made of polyethylene-terephthalate fiber is coated with semitransparent polyvinyl chloride resin, and the total light transmittance is in the range of 14-70%, an arch-shaped skeleton is coated from one end part of the structure to the other end. This membranous structure is built over a tennis court, and the faces corresponding to the lateral direction of the court are not covered with the membranous material so as to be open. The tennis court is thus well-ventilated and cool by shade in summer, and in winter the sunlight is transmitted so as to be warm, and hence tennis can be comfortably played.
The En-Fold™ roof available from Uni-Systems, LLC (Minneapolis, Minn.) is a high performance retractable tensile structure designed specifically for large commercial applications such as outdoor dining areas, outdoor event centers, pool decks and sports facilities.